In the same round of the league when Millwall beat Newcastle United 4:0, Manchester United won Everton at home, Arsenal narrowly defeated Coventry at home, and Chelsea defeated Aston Villa away from home.
With eight rounds left, the four teams in the championship group have widened the gap with the teams behind them. The Premier League has maintained an exciting competitive atmosphere from the beginning of the season to the final sprint, and now Millwall has the upper hand.
machine.
Millwall fights on three fronts, and the calls for winning the championship are very high on all fronts. It is obviously the biggest focus of English football.
The quarter-finals of the FA Cup begin, and Millwall will go to Highbury to challenge Arsenal.
At the pre-match press conference, Aldridge announced the lineup and starting lineup in advance without any secret.
He still uses substitutes in cup matches, even against Arsenal.
David Miller was very puzzled. He asked directly in front of Aldridge: "What are Millwall worried about? You have a two-goal advantage in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals next week and are leading the league.
4 points, FA Cup away game against Arsenal. If you win, you can enter the semi-finals. All three lines have a chance to win the championship. Why not use the full lineup now? Half of the main lineup will do."
Aldrich had a good relationship with Miller and answered each other's questions candidly.
"I pay more attention to the long-term construction of the team and giving young players training opportunities in important games. Maybe you will say that these substitute players usually play a lot of games, but the intensity of the game, the importance, and the strength of the opponents vary.
Facing Arsenal tomorrow is a test for them, and I choose to trust them."
"What if we lose?"
"Winning or losing is normal. I can accept any result of the game. The key is the process of the game. The rule of the football world is that the winner is stronger, not the strong. In tomorrow's game, we are the weaker side. It doesn't matter, the players' on-the-spot performance
The effect is what I care about most, as long as we perform well, we will also have a chance to win."
The next day, Millwall went to Highbury.
The stadium, which can accommodate 30,000 people, was packed, and even the newly appointed chairman of the Football Association came to watch the FA Cup dialogue.
After Wiseman resigned last year, the position of chairman of the Football Association became vacant. Thompson, who came from a local league, served as acting chairman for half a year and became a permanent chairman of the Football Association.
Thompson, who comes from a local league, naturally has the support of local league forces, while the Premier League's forces within the Football Association are opposed to his election. However, in the formal election, some opponents within the Football Association turned against him, which contributed to Thompson's decision.
A great victory.
On the day Thompson was successfully elected, Andrew invited Aldridge to dine out and talked about it lightly, vaguely hinting at the effectiveness of his activities with the FA.
Aldridge doesn't care much about this kind of thing, especially who the chairman of the FA is. Before the establishment of the Premier League, the position of the chairman of the FA has been almost an iron rice bowl for more than 70 or 80 years.
, the chairman has been in office for more than ten years on average, but after the establishment of the Premier League,
The turnover of chairman of the Football Association is getting faster and faster. Due to the conflict of interests between the Premier League and local leagues, the internal struggle of the Football Association is also fierce. The position of chairman of the Football Association is not only as simple as being prominent and glorious in the circle, but also
This is a hot potato, and those in power are on pins and needles.
No matter who you try to curry favor with, or who you intend to support, I'm afraid this person will not sit in this position stably for a long time. In this case, why should Aldridge waste his time?
Wenger had a serious expression when he appeared at Highbury. Arsenal were trailing Millwall and Manchester United in the league, and only the FA Cup was left to compete for the championship. He attached great importance to today's game.
In contrast, Aldridge seemed relaxed. He appeared on the sidelines and sat on the coach's bench, chatting and laughing with Klinsmann and Jansson.
"Arsenal's FA Cup quarter-final match against Millwall at home is about to begin. Players from both sides enter the stadium. Arsenal's main force is used, but Millwall has sent a full substitute lineup. It seems that Arsenal has a better chance of winning.
Bigger.”
Millwall really sent out all their substitutes today.
Goalkeeper: Keller.
Defenders: Ferreira, Mills, Neal, Cole.
Midfielder: Van der Meyde, Lampard, Gattuso, Grenjaer.
Forwards: Klose, Ruud van Nistelrooy.
442 against Arsenal's 442.
The tactics between the two are basically the same, but Arsenal seems to be significantly stronger on paper.
When the game started, Millwall retreated across the board to compress the space in the backcourt. When the opponent's offense advanced to the dangerous area, they used zone defense to press the opponent. After successfully stealing the ball, they launched a quick counterattack through the wing. This is consistent with Arsenal's usual style of play.
Basically the same.
Wenger is depressed. Arsenal is at home and the opponent has a substitute lineup. His team must be suppressed from the momentum!
But in the positional battle, their team's creativity was really limited, and their frontal attack could not produce very good results. Instead, Millwall counterattacked, and the defense frequently sounded the alarm.
In the 17th minute of the game, Bergkamp's shot was successfully saved by Keller. Keller threw the ball and launched a counterattack. Paul Ferreira passed the ball straight to Van der Meyde in front. Pires defended Van der Meyde personally. The Dutch used
He made a beautiful move of the ball and turned around to get rid of Pires, then used his speed advantage to open up the distance and made a 45-degree diagonal long pass from the side to find the two forwards in the penalty area.
Klose came out from behind and ran forward to header. Seaman was caught off guard by the header. The distance was too close. He did not make a save and the ball went into the net.
"Millwall took the lead in the away game, Klose scored with a header, and Van der Meyde's assist was really beautiful. Millwall is really scary now. Not only did their main lineup kill everyone, but their substitute lineup is also amazing."
The 4-4-2 formation that had been honed since the beginning of the season matured and took shape more than half a year later, especially the power of wing attacks.
Aldrich felt gratified in his heart. He worked hard for most of the season and saw that there were fewer and fewer games left in the season. He could watch the team become stronger. The young players improved significantly. He had a special sense of accomplishment in his heart.
Especially when the team lost many main players last summer and its strength declined.
Arsenal kicked off in the center circle, and the players looked depressed. If they couldn't win against Millwall's substitute lineup, they would obviously lose face.
Anelka passed the ball to Bergkamp, who passed it back to Vieira. Klose and Ruud van Nistelrooy stepped forward to press hard, and Vieira passed the ball straight to Bergkamp.
But Bergkamp was moving forward. He didn't expect Vieira to pass the ball to him so quickly. According to past situations, it should have been given to the wide players.
However, as soon as Van der Meyde and Grenjaer faced off against Pires and Overmars, Vieira either passed back or forward. He chose the latter, but Lampard stepped forward and successfully intercepted the ball.
After Lampard stole the ball, Van der Meyde ran to create space. Lampard knew it and handed the ball to the opponent.
After Van der Meyde stopped the ball, he hit another through ball.
Klose was on the receiving line, but he suddenly slipped his foot and shook the Arsenal defender. The missed ball directly penetrated the entire defense line. Van Nistelrooy successfully met the ball and went to the meeting alone after countering offside.
Seaman did not give up the goal. Ruud van Nistelrooy dribbled the ball into the penalty area and then pushed the ball safely into the lower right corner of the goal.
Adams shouted angrily at Vieira!
The midfielder was intercepted and quickly counterattacked. The defenders suddenly faced the opponent's through ball, and Klose's flash of a missed ball deceived everyone. To put it bluntly, Arsenal was to blame for this conceded goal!
"Millwall took a two-goal lead in less than 20 minutes after the opening! They scored two goals in a minute. Arsenal's second goal came from Vieira's passing error. Van der Meyde once again assisted his teammates to score. Kloj
Ze used his movement and leaked the ball to provide a cover for Van Nistelrooy. The Dutch striker was in really good condition and scored calmly with a single shot. Has Arsenal given up on the FA Cup?"
Watching Millwall's players celebrating, Arsenal's players looked a little frustrated, and Wenger was filled with hatred!
Aldridge cornered him today.
If Millwall plays all the main players, Arsenal can play defensive counterattack, which is their most powerful game routine. But if Millwall plays all the substitutes, would Arsenal be embarrassed not to focus on the attack?
But when playing like this, Arsenal's advantages cannot be used. Positional battles lack creativity. They play strictly and can only rely on the players' personal abilities to create opportunities.
He walked to the sidelines and let Overmars and Pires focus on attacking the opponent's two full-backs.
Paul Ferreira and Ashley Cole are both solid recruits. If such a soft persimmon comes to your door, there is no reason not to pinch it hard!
Not to mention, Wenger's adjustment and the individual performance of the wide players immediately helped Arsenal gain the upper hand in the positional battle.
Overmars faced Ashley Cole on the right and made two consecutive sudden stops and changes of direction, one 90 degrees and one 180 degrees. Ashley Cole also followed suit and waited for the second 180 degrees.
After turning around, Ashley Cole fainted and couldn't see Overmars or the ball in front of him. When he came to his senses, the opponent had already cut inside behind him with the ball.
He was shaken really badly. Overmars cut inside to attract the defensive attention, and then knocked back near the penalty area line. Pettit followed up and fired a blast to help Arsenal get a goal back.
"Petit's long shot opened the door to Millwall. Arsenal narrowed the score gap in the 28th minute of the game. Millwall's goal came from a defensive error by Ashley Cole. He is not Ovi at all.
Mas's opponent, but considering his age, this responsibility should be shouldered by Hall."
Indeed, no matter what problems the team has, the head coach is always to blame.
Even after losing the ball, Aldridge still sat motionless on the coach's bench, even holding his chin with a hint of a smile.
Ashley Cole spat after losing the ball, and then glanced at the coaching bench cryptically, fearing that Aldrich would be dissatisfied with his performance.
The Dutch Peter Pan has quick feet, turns quickly, and is incredibly flexible. Ashley Cole is still in the growth stage in terms of both technical ability and physical fitness. Is it any wonder that Overmars is teasing him?
Since Aldridge chose to let Ashley Cole and Paul Ferreira play, he can naturally foresee such a situation happening, but this is a necessary stage.
As for defenders, it is normal to be abused in the early stage. As long as they are not abused to the point of psychological shadow and can face setbacks with a normal mind, this can accelerate their growth and improvement.
Arsenal were unforgiving and determined to torture Ashley Cole to death, forcing Grenciar to almost become a full-back, double-teaming to defend Overmars.
But Arsenal's offense was already very flexible. Overmars' side failed to continue their efforts. They quickly shifted the attack to the left. Pires' advantage over Ferreira was not as obvious as Overmars over Cole, but
Pires stopped the ball and got rid of the inward movement smoothly and freely. After an inward cut, the world wave on the edge of the penalty area helped Arsenal equalize the score.
"In the 40th minute of the first half, Arsenal equalized the score! It seems that they have found their form. Pires can even shoot such a world wave. It is so surprising." (To be continued...)
